I love love and I hate most love songs. I feel that real love is incredibly beautiful in it's complexity yet knowledge of it's frailty. I want songs that express this sentiment without being cynical.
posted by eq21
on Feb 26, 2015 -
48 answers

Mr. Westridge's 40th birthday is coming up. I have decided to give him 40 of something every day for the forty days leading up to his actual birthday. One thing I want to give him is a collection of 40 love songs but I'm running out of ideas for songs. Also what would be the best way to gather all these songs together and present them? [more inside]
posted by WalkerWestridge
on Feb 19, 2015 -
30 answers

Something about the lion's roar at the beginning of the Pet Shop Boys' cover of Always on my Mind really gets me. What other songs use animal sounds to great effect? [more inside]
posted by Rinku
on Feb 19, 2015 -
35 answers

I'm looking for more songs similar to M. Ward's "One Hundred Million Years" for a 20-minute baby photo/video compilation. I have found plenty of kids' songs and songs written about having children. I'm looking for more indie songs that echo the sentiment, "And this love, this love between you and I, Is older than that burning ball of fire up in the sky." Songs by indie singers about endless love, happiness, joy, the beauty of life, etc. would fit the bill. [more inside]
posted by TBoneMcCool
on Jan 29, 2015 -
13 answers

I want to read, watch, or hear things that teach or discuss how to make electronic music. But from a creative or structural perspective, not a solely technical perspective. [more inside]
posted by threeants
on Jan 28, 2015 -
8 answers

I'm looking for the lyrics of a Mary Chapin-Carpenter song called (I think) "Mama, there ain't no Cowboys in New Jersey". It never seems to have been officially released, and google turns up references to it but no words. I'm really mostly looking for the lyrics, not necessarily a copy. Any ideas?
posted by transient
on Jan 19, 2015 -
2 answers

What's it called when a spoken-word poem has musical accompaniment? And what are some excellent specimens of the genre? To give you an idea of the sound/feel I'm looking for I've included a few examples below the fold, the tracks that inspired this quest for [more inside]
posted by carsonb
on Sep 25, 2014 -
16 answers

I really like playing the song "Claudia's Theme" from the Unforgiven soundtrack. I'm not a very good guitar player but it's a slow enough pace and it's so deceptively simple that I can really concentrate on performing the piece or I can just pluck away at it without having to give it a ton of thought. [more inside]
posted by VTX
on Aug 15, 2014 -
6 answers

I'm looking for songs which have lyrics that are inspirational, particularly in terms of moving forward, overcoming adversity, or not losing hope. What made you think "things will be ok" when you first heard it, especially if it wasn't something you would normally listen to? Whether it's just a line, verse, chorus, or the whole song, all genres are welcome. [more inside]
posted by billiebee
on Aug 10, 2014 -
79 answers

I'm looking for good Japanese songs or artists that will teach me new, useful words or phrases so that I can improve. I read articles in Japanese too, but words seem to 'stick' better when I am listening to a song and going over the kanji and hiragana at the same time. Details inside. [more inside]
posted by Kamelot123
on Jul 24, 2014 -
12 answers

Hi!
I'm traveling to a french immersion program this summer for 5 weeks. Nothing but French everything is allowed...even music. Anyone have some recommendations for great french music (with lyrics)? I've listened to Yelle, and have exhausted my Carla Bruni playlist. All genres are welcomed, but I'd especially love some contemporary stuff!
Merci!
posted by LemonGardot
on Jun 24, 2014 -
53 answers

I'm looking for suggestions for light, airy, instrumentals that evoke feelings of peaceful, summer afternoons....and that doesn't fit into the all the other summer music questions, ha! [more inside]
posted by barchan
on Jun 16, 2014 -
12 answers

My father's been quite ill and we've been looking for ways to keep his mind off the discomfort he's in. He generally doesnt sing very much but sings marvelously when he does, so today we started singing together—he, I, my brother on the guitar, and my mum humming along tentatively :). It was lovely; we all enjoyed it, and we'd like to do it more. I'm looking for duet suggestions—more details inside. [more inside]
posted by miaow
on Jun 15, 2014 -
11 answers

Returning to running after taking a few months off, and need some new music. Can you recommend some songs not necessarily about running, but include lyrics about physically moving forward? Legs, feet moving and the like? [more inside]
posted by raztaj
on May 22, 2014 -
14 answers

Happy Ruination Day, people of Metafilter!
Gillian Welch wrote this great duofoldsong about April 14. Loudon Wainwright III wrote one that's sort of about March 16. Can you tell me about other songs about particular days of the year?
Important limitations:
[more inside]
posted by Jasper Fnorde
on Apr 14, 2014 -
40 answers

I'm looking for songs that mix 80s and/or 90s pop with other genres. My favorite example of this is Orbital's Halcyon - And On And On Live that samples Bon Jovi's You Give Love A Bad Name and Belinda Carlisle's Heaven Is A Place On Earth. Any other genre is fine but electronic genres are preferred. Thanks!
posted by aceyprime
on Mar 10, 2014 -
5 answers

I learned recently that Neil Diamond's Sweet Caroline was first released back in 1969. What are other examples of old, popular songs? (Where old means more than 40 years, and popular means that a crowd of people would be capable of singing at least the chorus.)
posted by FreelanceBureaucrat
on Mar 4, 2014 -
38 answers

I've been looking to no avail for research into the content of song lyrics re-enforcing ideas like a mantra in the mind. Does anyone know of any research into this?
We learn by repetition so one would imagine the brain isn't selective. Brand re-enforcement advertising works this way so lyrical content should too?
posted by debord
on Feb 26, 2014 -
2 answers

I know there are songs I want on these playlists that I'm not remembering, and I'm constantly aware that I have blind spots that may be robbing me of perfect songs. Can you help me attack either issue by looking over one or both playlists then suggesting songs to add? [more inside]
posted by batmonkey
on Feb 25, 2014 -
5 answers

Help me remember music videos from that magical era when bands would record theme songs for (often horror) movies that were actually lyrically about the movies themselves and the artist would sometimes appear in the video and the video would be a story video and...well you know. Think Ramones' "Pet Sematary" or Dokken's "Dream Warriors" [more inside]
posted by Senor Cardgage
on Feb 19, 2014 -
59 answers

I'm looking for more love songs with a specific theme - essentially, "You drive me fucking crazy and sometimes I want to throttle you and we're both kind of fucked up AND ALSO I love you more than anything and need you more than air and think you're the best person ever." [more inside]
posted by DulcineaX
on Feb 7, 2014 -
46 answers

I've always had a thing for songs which sample snatches of movie or television dialogue. This question covered similar material, but I'm not specifically looking for remixes that appeared on an affiliated movie's soundtrack. [more inside]
posted by The Card Cheat
on Feb 7, 2014 -
45 answers

I'm looking for songs with similar harmonies to First Aid Kit. Any genre considered, and songs with more than a two part harmony are welcome. Practising harmonies with some friends and need some practice material :) [more inside]
posted by drunkonthemoon
on Jan 30, 2014 -
22 answers

In an attempt to stave off the winter blues, I want to compile a playlist of songs where the artists are clearly enjoying themselves. Examples inside. [more inside]
posted by coppermoss
on Jan 21, 2014 -
60 answers

While reading in a coffee shop (ok, so it was a Starbucks) I was introduced to Leonard Cohen's song Dance to the End of Love. I've been obsessing about it ever since. It's plangent melody, which sounds like something Eastern European or Jewish in melody, is wonderfully endearing and catchy. I've also heard Mary Hopkins' song "Those Were the Days" which is based of an old-Gypsy song Dorogoi dlinnoyu (("Дорогой длинною"). I'm looking for other pop songs that trade on Gypsy or Eastern European melodies and motifs. They need not be American songs , or even have lyrics related to rustic surroundings (Cohen's song, for instance, doesn't) but they should have that same melodic sensibility. I don't have a technical knowledge of music but most of us can atleast sort of agree what songs sound "eastern europeanish" or Gypsy-ish or Jewish (see Dve Giatari for example or Tumabalalaika for a Jewish example) They need not be American songs as well. Anything really will do.
posted by RapcityinBlue
on Jan 14, 2014 -
35 answers

Please help me create a comprehensive list of songs that reference events in U.S. History! I teach high school U.S. History courses, and each day between classes I try to play a song that references what we'll be studying that day - students try to guess who the song is by and how it relates to what we're studying as they come into class. [more inside]
posted by leitmotif
on Jan 13, 2014 -
107 answers

Baa Baa Blacksheep, Twinkle Twinkle, and the alphabet song are all the same tune. How is it that one song has been used for three well known songs? What are some other examples of songs being the exact same tune but with totally different lyrics? (I'll accept rip off/coincidence type things like Born This Way/Express Yourself, but I'm looking more for examples where the identical-song-different-lyrics thing was deliberate and done knowingly.)
posted by PuppetMcSockerson
on Jan 6, 2014 -
51 answers

So, after decades of basically ignoring them, I'm finally getting into the spirit of enjoying classic Christmas songs. But I don't know much about them. I know many of them have been covered literally hundreds of times. As a starting point, I'd like to better understand which versions of popular Christmas songs have been MOST popular over time. [more inside]
posted by Alaska Jack
on Dec 11, 2013 -
45 answers

Most of the music I listen to is by men, and about men. The songs I have from female singers are either somewhat depressing or about love. I would love to get recommendations for uplifting songs by strong women that are not about love.
posted by blub
on Dec 11, 2013 -
54 answers

I heard a song on the radio. Male vocal over instrumental backup, more or less folk style, sort of vaguely Irish sounding in style. I can only remember two lines: "beware the romance of exotic frontiers" and "garnished the blood of a nation". Google's got nothin'. What is this song? Thanks!
posted by crazylegs
on Nov 24, 2013 -
3 answers

Looking for songs that reflect the following sentiment: I'm sorry I hurt you, you were right to end things, I hope we can build a better friendship but I don't expect anything, thank you for trying anyway. [more inside]
posted by divabat
on Nov 13, 2013 -
22 answers

I'm looking for songs which mention/ can be interpreted to mention self-harm, but in which SH isn't their focus.
Examples of what I'm looking for inside. They don't have to be any specific genre or mood, it's the lyrics I'm interested.
Thanks! [more inside]
posted by Braeburn
on Oct 10, 2013 -
24 answers

About Ask MetaFilter

Ask MetaFilter is a question and answer site that covers nearly any question on earth, where members help each other solve problems. Ask MetaFilter is where thousands of life's little questions are answered.